Teaching Kids About Where Food Comes From

While chaperoning a school field trip recently, I plucked a plant from the ground, probably mint, and readied to pop it into my mouth. One of the boys in my group looked at me strangely and said with a grimace, "That came out of the ground, and you're going to eat it?" Oh my, I thought. We have so distanced ourselves from the nature of where food comes from that an 8-year-old thought it strange to eat something coming out of the earth!
In order to Protect Planet Home, we need to think about our food, including how it's grown and where it's grown. The journey from garden or greenhouse to table should be part of our regular family meal-time conversation. There is a lot to talk about, including all the local markets, CSAs, Food Cooperatives, and neighborhood gardens that are making inroads bringing healthy and chemical-free food to many towns. In my area, local farmers are contributing to school lunch programs, where salad bars are now offered daily.
If we talk about where good food comes from, we'll be more aware of the impact food choices can make on our own health and on the health of the planet.
photo: D. Sharon Pruitt